§ Baroness Galeasked Her Majesty's Government:
When they will publish the joint Department of Health and the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry study into branded medicines. [HL868]
§ Lord Hunt of Kings HeathThe joint Department of Health and Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry (ABPI) study into the extent of competition in the supply of branded medicines to the National Health Service was published today.
An integral part of the current pharmaceutical price regulation scheme (PPRS) agreement that took effect on 1 October 1999 is a joint assessment by the department and the ABPI of the scope, pace and change and practical impact of competition in the supply and use of branded medicines for the NHS. The results of this study will be available to both the Government and the pharmaceutical industry in considering the future direction of policy on the PPRS.
The study comprised seven components and work on each of the components was undertaken jointly by the department and the ABPI with some elements of the analysis contracted out to third parties. The study allowed an unprecedented level of shared data collection and analysis between the department and the branded pharmaceutical industry in the United Kingdom.
Copies of the study, entitled PPRS: The Study into the Extent of Competition in the Supply of Branded Medicines to the NHS, have been placed in the Library.